Redditor Iridescent126 asked:
"What was the saddest fictional character death for you?"
Spock
"Spock, in Wrath of Khan."
- Lisa_Anns_Ass
"'I have been, and always shall be, your friend'.”
- MadMacs77
"'Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... human'."
- bozoconnors
GiphyStoick the Vast
"Stoick the Vast How to train your dragon"
"Dude literally just reunited with his wife after over 15 years of being gone and spends a total of about 15 minutes with her. Cause of death: basically took a bullet in the chest to protect his son."
- 24Nitro-gamer
"I saw it in theatres and a bunch of kids started to cry. Not like sniffing but out loud wailing. It added to the atmosphere."
- ThePurpleMister
"I cried, 20-something y.o. dude just ugly crying"
- leotushex
The Iron Giant
"The Iron Giant will ALWAYS have me ugly crying when he goes up to stop the missle"
- muhfckinuhhh
GiphyWhere The Red Fern Grows
"The dogs in 'Where the Red Fern Grows'."
- johnny*mseed
"Came here to say this. This book destroyed me in grade five but also really demonstrated grief in such a profound way."
- such_sweet_nothing
Bubba
"Bubba in Forrest Gump. That whole scene had me wrecked."
"From Bubba's weak, 'I wanna go home,' to Forrest's narration saying he died by that river in Vietnam while showing him holding Bubba....."
"God damn, I'm crying just thinking about it."
- ChuckZombie
GiphySaving Private Ryan
"Saving Private Ryan has two of the saddest, most brutally gut wrenching deaths I’ve ever seen on screen in Wade and Mellish."
"Wade trying to talk the guys through his injury that goes from panic and terror to acceptance of his own death as he cries out for his mother and says 'I want to go home'? Jesus Christ."
"Mellish is brutal for all the more uncomfortable and raw reasons you’d imagine. War is horrific. Young men are sent off to die, and their lives are cut short for no reason."
"It’s tragic and heartbreaking, and this is one of the only movies to really nail that feeling"
- Tuna-No-Crust
Ellie From Up
"Ellie from 'UP' gets me everytime"
- MaterialScientist420
"Sometimes I wonder how movies ever took off when the first ones were short with no sound."
"Then I remember the time a 10 minute animation with no dialogue absolutely wrecked me. It's a god-damned masterpiece and I hate it."
- cycloptian_tit
GiphyM*A*S*H Had A Few
"Henry Blake. MAS*H. The scene in the operating room. The actors weren’t told about it, just called back for one last scene shoot and Radar walks in and tells them. The silence is amplified by the sounds of instruments still working. Haunting"
- Salami_sub
"Piggy backing off this, the guy they tried to keep alive so his kids wouldn't remember Christmas as the day their dad died. That one gets me just thinking about it."
- GaussfaceKilla
"I just saw that one like a month ago! That was totally heartbreaking. Hawkeye spins the clock forward to twelve o five December twenty sixth and they all conspire to forge his death certificate"
- The_Dynasty_Group
My Girl
"'He can’t see without his glasses'"
- peesherman42
"What made this especially shocking/sad is that the entire movie was a huge bait-and-switch, but in a really effective way."
"At the time, 11-year old me thought -- based on the trailers and the marketing -- that I was about to watch a lighthearted coming-of-age movie."
"And while it does have some of that, boy did it have a macabre edge to it."
- Geekboxing
Littlefoot's Mom
"Littlefoot’s mother’s death"
- 2-DMan
"My son fell in love with this movie when he was 3 or 4, and every time that part would come on I would have to leave the room because no matter what age I am, I will always get emotional. Something about the music and the overall vibe that really just punches me in the gut."
- isurfnude4foods
"The music plus the quote 'Let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely'. It's so beautiful and tragic."
- fiofo
GiphyThe sign of a great story is how it can touch our hearts and sometimes break it.
So what was the saddest character death for you?
Curious to hear whose deaths had the biggest impact, Redditor Jrose798 asked:
"Which famous person’s death were you not ready for?"
They made us laugh when they were alive and broke our hearts when they passed.
The Comic Genius
"Robin Williams, he was a legend RIP."
– Thankless_ruler
"Robin Williams died on my 21st birthday. The thought that someone so f'king funny could be so sad hit me like a brick at that age. Haunted me throughout cake with my family. I still think about him all the time."
– BlazedInMyWinnie
Stand Up Legend
"George Carlin"
– eyes-of-strange-sins
We could use his insight these past 2 years. Rip George.
– GingerUsurperFans reflect on those who've made a huge impact on their lives.
He Brought Severus Snape To Life
"Alan Rickman."
"Man could have read the Tax Code, and I would have been in awe."
– lazyasdrmr
"By Grabthar's hammer... The taxes imposed by section 3201 shall be collected by the employer of the taxpayer by deducting the amount of the taxes from the compensation of the employee as and when paid."
– hymie0
Space Fan
"Neil Armstrong and Carrie Fisher. As a huge Star Wars and Space fan since forever, I hadn't even conceived the possibility that they would die someday, even if I was already 17 when Carrie Fisher died."
– Skeledenn
"There are only 12 Apollo astronauts left out of the 24 that flew. Of those 12 left, only 4 walked on the moon. If NASA’s Artemis program doesn’t start producing results soon, the experience of walking on another world will pass out of living memory."
– RogueRocketeer
He Had Passion For Animals
"Steve Irwin’s death broke me as a kid."
– dboz99
"I was in basic combat training, and the drill sergeants gathered us and said counselors were on standby and that we had experienced a national tragedy."
"We were expecting a 2nd 9/11 event. They told us Steve had died and everyone laughed. I was f'king devastated."
"Like so many, he taught me to appreciate the beauty of nature, and its inhabitants. Though a creature could be deadly if mistreated or not respected for its power, it was still worth understanding and appreciating."
"Steve, was an incredibly formative part of my upbringing."
– AldereztheGreat
The Venerated Food Critic
"Anthony Bourdain. He was weirdly like a member of our family, so many of our holiday traditions included watching and rewatching no reservations. All of our favorite meals were from his cookbooks. It was a gut punch for sure."
– Affectionate-Oven306
These young actors had their whole life ahead of them.
Posthumous Oscar Winner
"Heath Ledger. He was on his way to greatness."
– bdbr
He Was Entering The Prime Of His Career
"Anton Yelchin. He was so young and full of life. His career was really starting to pick up. I still feel upset about it."
– zephyr1004
The Beloved Roboticist
"Grant Imahara."
– JrsyDude
"This one crushed me because I had a brief interaction with him shortly before his death. I ran into him at San Diego Comic Con. He took a picture of me and my wife dressed as Rocket and Groot."
– dandroid126
Two Honorable Mentions
"Chadwick Boseman and Avicii, no one even knew that Chadwick was sick and Avicii was like 27 when he died."
– yeetgodmcnechass
I was not ready for the death of Luke Perry, the actor who played bad boy Dylan McKay in the original teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210.
Not only was he a loving father, but he also had the respect of most people in the industry. According to those who closely worked with him, Perry was a presence of encouragement.
I may even have had a crush on the guy. Sigh.
R.I.P., Luke.
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